Dumont & Blake Investment Advisors LLC Decreases Stock Holdings in Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF)

Dumont & Blake Investment Advisors LLC lessened its holdings in Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF) by 58.8% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 37,928 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 54,238 shares during the period. Dumont & Blake Investment Advisors LLC’s holdings in Synchrony Financial were worth $1,892,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in SYF. Swedbank AB increased its stake in shares of Synchrony Financial by 23.8% during the second quarter. Swedbank AB now owns 99,461 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $4,694,000 after buying an additional 19,098 shares during the period. Cetera Investment Advisers purchased a new position in Synchrony Financial in the first quarter worth $2,192,000. Nordea Investment Management AB increased its holdings in Synchrony Financial by 33.5% in the first quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 2,685,598 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $115,266,000 after buying an additional 674,366 shares in the last quarter. Meeder Asset Management Inc. raised its position in Synchrony Financial by 98.6% during the first quarter. Meeder Asset Management Inc. now owns 23,859 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,029,000 after acquiring an additional 11,846 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Sei Investments Co. grew its holdings in shares of Synchrony Financial by 52.6% during the 1st quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 490,147 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $21,134,000 after purchasing an additional 168,920 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 96.48% of the company’s stock.

Synchrony Financial Price Performance

NYSE:SYF traded up $0.07 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $55.33. 59,256 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 3,923,753. The company has a market capitalization of $22.22 billion, a P/E ratio of 7.93, a P/E/G ratio of 1.22 and a beta of 1.61. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.06, a current ratio of 1.25 and a quick ratio of 1.23. The business has a 50 day moving average of $50.01 and a 200 day moving average of $46.94. Synchrony Financial has a 1-year low of $27.65 and a 1-year high of $57.26.

Synchrony Financial (NYSE:SYF) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, October 16th. The financial services provider reported $1.94 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.77 by $0.17. The firm had revenue of $3.81 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.76 billion. Synchrony Financial had a return on equity of 16.64% and a net margin of 13.98%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 9.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $1.48 earnings per share. Research analysts forecast that Synchrony Financial will post 6.19 EPS for the current year.

Synchrony Financial Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, November 4th will be given a dividend of $0.25 per share. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.81%. Synchrony Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 14.35%.

Insider Activity

In other Synchrony Financial news, insider Brian J. Sr. Wenzel sold 74,698 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $46.73, for a total value of $3,490,637.54. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 76,251 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,563,209.23. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In other news, insider Bart Schaller sold 930 shares of Synchrony Financial stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $50.84, for a total value of $47,281.20. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 49,390 shares in the company, valued at $2,510,987.60. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, insider Brian J. Sr. Wenzel sold 74,698 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $46.73, for a total value of $3,490,637.54. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 76,251 shares in the company, valued at $3,563,209.23. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.33% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Barclays raised their price target on shares of Synchrony Financial from $49.00 to $59.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, October 17th. Compass Point increased their price objective on shares of Synchrony Financial from $56.00 to $60.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 16th. Bank of America upgraded Synchrony Financial from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $54.00 price objective for the company in a report on Friday, August 9th. BMO Capital Markets lowered their price objective on shares of Synchrony Financial from $42.00 to $41.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, July 18th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group increased their price objective on Synchrony Financial from $60.00 to $65.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, October 17th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating, thirteen have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $56.25.

Synchrony Financial Company Profile

Synchrony Financial, together with its subsidiaries, operates as a consumer financial services company in the United States. It provides credit products, such as credit cards, commercial credit products, and consumer installment loans. The company also offers private label credit cards, dual co-brand and general purpose credit cards, short- and long-term installment loans, and consumer banking products; and deposit products, including certificates of deposit, individual retirement accounts, money market accounts, and savings accounts, and sweep and affinity deposits, as well as accepts deposits through third-party securities brokerage firms.